The present invention relates to a clutch for an automatic clothes washer and more particularly to a vertical axis washer having a planetary drive system.
Automatic washers having a direct drive system between the motor and agitator/wash basket require a clutch mechanism so that the washer will be able to operate in an agitate mode wherein the agitator is oscillated while the basket is held stationary, and in a water extraction mode wherein the agitator and basket are spun together. Conventional machines utilizing this drive system incorporate a spring clutch or a spline clutch with a solenoid to actuate the clutch, moving the clutch member vertically on the motor shaft to selectively engage or disengage a connection with the basket. This spline clutch and solenoid represent a fairly expensive mechanism and it would be an improvement in the art if a less expensive arrangement were provided which would nevertheless provide the necessary clutch function of shifting between the agitate mode and the spin mode.